


Falling For You

by NekoAbi



Series: Falling For You [1]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: General Anxious Behaviour, Human AU, M/M, Swearing, implied wet dreams, school au, vague nsfw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-13 06:01:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16886967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoAbi/pseuds/NekoAbi
Summary: Patton is hardcore crushing on his friend, Logan. Virgil is hardcore crushing on his friend, Roman. All four of them are a group of friends, with Patton and Virgil talking openly to each other about their crushes. Summer vacation is almost over and school is fast approaching. How will the boys deal with their crushes when they're back in close proximity?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic used two songs from the british band Busted as inspiration - One is called [Falling For You](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9HEO3GgqtM), the other is [That Thing You Do](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4ML9lLSKx0). Some lines are directly taken from the song, but not much.

The summer break was practically over, which meant his parents coxing him to get back into a normal routine for sleeping. That was why Patton’s alarm clock was ringing so loudly next to his face.

He groaned, reached out to shut it up and rolled over. He began blinking away some of the fuzziness caused by sleep, leaving the normal lack of detail that came with his unassisted eyesight. There was a sudden pang to his chest as he looked out at the empty expanse in front of him. His hand dragged itself down his face, another groan finding its way out of his throat.

‘Of course, it was never going to be that easy.’ Patton thought to himself as he sat up, reaching out for his glasses. He’d hoped that being away from school would help him get over the warm and fuzzy feelings of the crush, but the separation had only made it worse. He had it bad.

Patton swung himself out of bed, thinking about the empty side of the bed the whole time he dressed himself. It wasn’t like his crush never noticed him, it was quite the opposite. The simple fact they were friends made it even worse. He was so lost in his thoughts about the object of his affections that the silence throughout the house didn’t even register until he reached the kitchen.

His parents would have normally been up at this time and rushing around, getting ready to leave for work whilst simultaneously attempting to have something resembling a normal breakfast. It was hectic, but it was just normal. The silence was a little unsettling.

Patton made his way over to the cupboard that housed the glasses, when a note left on the kitchen table caught his eye. He poured himself a drink before going and reading the note:

Good morning, sweetie.

Just wanted to leave a reminder that both your father and I will not be home tonight.  
We’ve been busy with work.  
Have a wonderful day, and don’t stay up too late.

We love you!

He blinked and read the note over.

That’s right. His parents said a week ago that they were taking a night for themselves.

He was alone for a night.

A sudden excited feeling hit his stomach as he realised what that could mean. He could have a sleepover. With all his friends. A grin slowly spread across his face.

Patton took the stairs two at a time as he rushed to his room, not truly thinking. He practically ripped the charger from his phone and scrolled through his contacts, his mind racing with plans and ideas. His excitement overrode every other thought as he called the number. The plans racing through his mind didn’t allow him to register who he’d just called until-

“Hello Patton.”

Patton froze in the middle of pacing. The smile dropped from his face as he swallowed hard. Oops.

“H-Hey Logan! How’re you today!?” His voice was higher than usual, silently cursing himself for not paying more attention beforehand.

There’s a chuckle on the other end of the line that causes Patton to practically melt on the spot, “I am doing well. How about yourself?”

His train of thought screeched to a halt as he attempted to act normal. “I’m great! More than great! Fantastic!” Patton noticed he spoke too fast, blush heating up his cheeks. What was he thinking about before? He attempted to remember, becoming silent as he racked his brain. He was brought back into reality as Logan’s voice sounded once again.

“Was there any particular reason you decided to call me today?” The tone was amused, as if the boy already knew.

Patton struggled to find the words, not sure if he wanted to invite the other over. “Uh…” The noise dragged out as he attempted to find a cover. His eyes spotted the papers scattered over his desk, “the work! Over summer. I- I needed some help, with a question…” He trailed off quietly, feeling disappointment.

The phone call continued, Patton managing to work with his excuse. Logan’s tone never changed, always holding a hint of amusement as he offered his help. The discussion quickly ran its course and the two hung up.

Patton threw himself back onto the bed, covering his face with an arm, “I’m a mess…” He spoke to the empty room. He replayed the events back in his head, wishing he could go back and restart it all. Had he already called someone else and asked them first, the call wouldn’t have been such an issue. He couldn’t possibly begin by asking Logan, there was the possibility no one else would be able to make it and he then wouldn’t be able to cancel the plans because it was Logan and he couldn’t handle being alone with him for that long. He moved his arm off his face, taking a breath.

It was over now anyway. He couldn’t possibly now make plans with the others, and then call Logan back. He’d know immediately what had happened. Patton pushed himself up, gaze trained on the floor, “Stupid…”

The boy suddenly snapped his head up, feeling more driven. It was silly to dwell on this, he still had the house to himself, he may as well make the most of it. He jumped up off the bed and made his way downstairs. Patton started up his playlist as he reached the bottom of the stairs and started it.

Baking was therapeutic. It was relaxing and enjoyable. Combined with a playlist of his favourite music, Patton found himself forgetting about the events of the morning as he poured hours into his creations. He took a break partway through to make himself lunch, after realising he’d forgotten breakfast entirely.

The thoughts came tumbling back in as he was decorating, however. They weren’t necessarily bad thoughts, as they offered multiple inspirations.

Patton took a step back, admiring the spread of treats he’d created over the course of the day. He allowed a wave of pride to fall over him as he reached for one of the small cupcakes decorated with a swirl of icing that mixed shades of dark blues and purples with small flecks of white. He gazed fondly over them, smiling softly.

A pleased hum followed as he took a bite out of it. Patton reached out to check the time, head moving along with the music. “What?! It’s already 8?!” He snapped his head to the nearest window, staring at the darkness outside. Quickly, he stuffed the rest of the cupcake into his mouth as he busied himself with putting away as many of his creations as he could.

Many filled containers later, Patton made himself dinner before preparing for bed. He plugged his phone back in and placed his glasses next to them, staring at the expanse of the bed in front of him. As he lay himself down under the covers, he ignored the feeling in his chest that resurfaced from the morning. He shifted around for what felt like hours, unable to sleep due to his racing thoughts. Eventually, sleep took a hold of him, allowing his thoughts to be stilled somewhat.

Patton’s eyes opened slowly, as he began to wake up. There was some kind of feeling or weight against his side, but he couldn’t quite make out what the shape was in the darkness of the room. His arm reached out for his glasses, which he soon found and slipped on easily. His eyes soon adjusted to the darkness.

Strewn about the floor and end of the bed were various items of clothing. Some Patton recognised as his own clothing from the previous day, the rest he wasn’t sure he could place but seeing them made him feel happy. His eyes slowly drifted down to what was resting on his side.

It was Logan, deep asleep and very obviously naked. It was then that Patton realised he himself was also not wearing any form of clothing. The pieces clicked together.

Patton didn’t feel any surprise with any of this. In fact, he could feel himself smiling, the weight slowly feeling heavier the more he looked at the other. He almost felt proud. His mind raced with what felt like memories of the past events, leading up to this moment right in front of him. His body’s natural reaction began quick, but he made no move to address the ‘issue’.

Patton’s smile was soft as he thought to himself, ‘This is how I want it to be…’ He glanced over to see the time but couldn’t make it out and no amount of staring was going to help him. Instead, he allowed himself to relax and fall back asleep again, the memories still playing through vividly in his mind.

The next time Patton’s eyes opened, it was a snap movement accompanied by a light gasp. 

There was a second where his body felt heavy and warm, an intense feeling coursing through his body. The next second, he felt the uncomfortable wetness seeping through. His face began to burn as the whole situation began to register in his sleep-addled mind. Patton pulled the pillow out from under him and buried his face in it, wanting more than anything to not have to admit what had just happened to himself.

He eventually pulled himself up in order to clean up the mess. His face never lost the redness in his cheeks, his mind still calling back to the vivid dream. The “memories”, the weight, the view… it had all felt so real. Climbing back into bed, Patton sighed to himself and closed his eyes, muttering to himself, “I want it that way…” Slowly, his breathing evened out and he slipped back to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Virgil couldn’t be still. He was jumping up from the sofa once every couple of minutes and peering outside the front window, hoping to catch a glimpse of the visitor before they arrived. His mother had told him that a neighbour was coming over to drop something off while she was at work. He’d stopped paying attention to the finer details at that point, his mind racing at the simple prospect of having to open the door to someone without knowing who they were or having a set time they were coming over.

“Deep breath…” He mutters to himself, closing his eyes for a moment, “It’ll be fine… Just… open the door, smile, take it, goodbye, shut the door.” Virgil let out a breath, glancing back out the front window again and then towards the clock. It was almost 1pm.

As he turned to go sit back down, a knock made him jump. Nervous energy coursed through his veins, as he took a moment to pause, hoping to make it look like he wasn’t just standing around waiting for this moment. Virgil ran a hand over his hair, smoothing it down and shoved one hand into his hoodie pocket as he opened the door.

Everything stopped. That was not what he expected on the other side of the door. Virgil collected himself as quick as possible, acting as normal as he could in the moment.

“Oh? So, are you the whore I paid to come fuck me?” Virgil let a small smirk grow on his face as he leaned against the door frame. The loud laugh that followed did not make his façade almost falter. Not at all.

“Funny, but sadly no, not this time.”

Virgil sighed and pushed himself back up to stand on both feet, “Then why are you here, Roman?”

A plastic container was pushed into his vision, causing Virgil to flinch ever so slightly, “My parents are busy today, so I said I’d come drop this off at your house. Did not make a single ounce of difference when they told me it was for your family.” Roman’s eyebrow raised, as his expression grew cocky.

Scoffing, the plastic container was swiped away from the boy outside. Virgil turned to take it to the kitchen, talking over his shoulder, “Well, come in then.” He made his way deeper into the house, listening closely to the noises of the door closing and the soft footsteps making their way across the front room.

Virgil closed the door to the kitchen, leaning against the counter and letting out a hard breath. The plastic container was placed down, and his now-free hands came up to cover his face, attempting to calm the blush that he could feel heating up his cheeks. “Why did you say that, you idiot?!” he chastised himself under his breath, “now he must know!”

‘No. No. It’s no different than usual. Its just normal. Just normal.’ Virgil’s mind chanted as he dropped his hands, and quickly checked his reflection in the oven door. Not for the first time, he was thankful he coated his face in a decent layer of foundation. He took one final steadying breath before making his way out to the sofa.

A soft breath of laughter reached Virgil’s ears as he made his way over. He silently observed Roman texting, before shutting the kitchen door with a little more force than usual. With how Roman’s gaze turned to him and had the smallest amount of fear in it, Virgil felt he was right to assume it was probably something he wasn’t going to be told about.

Roman quickly recovered and offered a bright smile, “Well, hello honey. How nice of you to join me out here.” That startled Virgil, he stopped dead in his tracks, a look of confusion and shock appearing on his face. It dropped quickly as the other boy chuckled, eyebrow raised and a smug smile gracing his face.

Ignoring the flip his stomach did, Virgil rolled his eyes as he threw himself down onto the sofa. He left a decently large gap between himself and the other, “Whatever. You wanna, like, play a game or something?” He avoided looking in the general direction of the other boy, as his hand reached for the remote.

“Oh? What do you have in mind?” Virgil was hyper aware of how Roman moved closer as he spoke. He once again praised himself for his makeup choice. ‘Why is he still moving? What can I- Should- How does-’ His thoughts were tripping over each other in his head. He had to think of something quick.

Virgil stood up, with a sigh. He watched the other stop in the reflection of the TV just before it came to life, “Mario Kart?” He threw a glance over his shoulder, already knowing the answer. He caught Roman’s eyes and saw the fire flicker to life.

“I will destroy you.”

The hours passed by quickly. Virgil began to just enjoy spending time with the other boy. It wasn’t like they weren’t already friends, but that was what made this crush he had even more frustrating. He’d found it hard enough to just become friends, and who knows what would happen if Roman found out about his crush. He could lose a friend. Hell, he could lose all his friends. There was no way he’d let that happen, so he just shoved all the feelings down for as long as possible. Sure, there were times where they messed with each other, but that was all it was. Playful teasing. Friendly banter. Nothing more. Either way, his focus was on not allowing Roman to win.

Virgil was brought out of his thoughts as his phone vibrated loudly next to him, causing him to jump and lose concentration. Roman took the opportunity and passed him, winning the race.

He practically threw himself off the sofa, his arms held high in victory, “Ha! I win! Just like I said!” Roman turned and looked at Virgil, who was pretending to ignore him by reading the message. Roman’s hands rested on his hips as he stared the other boy down, “Uh, excuse me? You can’t just ignore my victory like this. You’re meant to be frustrated, and challenging me to another race?”

Virgil snorted softly at the thought, “Sorry to disappoint. Anyway, my mom’s on her way home. You should probably go…” He trailed off a little, not wanting to give the impression he was trying to get rid of him.

This was one of the rare moments he was thankful for the other boy’s theatrical nature. Virgil watched, amused, as Roman’s face transformed into a look of utter horror and betrayal, “I cannot believe this! You’re kicking me out onto the streets? After all the time we’ve spent together? How could you do this to me?!”

Virgil stuck his leg out, and kicked Roman’s leg playfully, “Shut up. You owe me a rematch sometime anyway, that last race was not fair. I was distracted.”

“Fine, fine. I’ll leave, I suppose.” Virgil’s face dropped into a look of awe as Roman stretched his arms out above his head. He was entranced as he watched the shirt the other boy wore rise along with the movement. The more surprising part, was that it revealed a navel piercing. There’d always been rumours, but never did Virgil think he’d ever get to find out the truth.

He managed to collect himself before the other strode to the door, turning as his hand rested on the handle, “Thank you for allowing me in. It was fun, Virgil.” A sincere smile. A goodbye. A promise to see the other at school in a week. Then Virgil was alone in the house once again.

The rest of the evening passed in a blurry mess. His mother returned, they had dinner, he had a vague understanding of the discussion about getting back to as normal a sleep schedule as he could attempt. Nothing could dissipate the thoughts of the day’s events.

Virgil excused himself soon after his mother was done, saying he was tired and really needed to shower today. Hair still wet and thoughts still racing, he crawled under the multiple blankets strewn about on his bed. He curled in on himself as he closed his eyes, where his vision was full of the other boy’s face as he smirked, ears full of his laugh. He wasn’t sure how long it had taken, but eventually exhaustion won control of him.

When he woke next, he could hear running water. Why could he hear water? It didn’t sound like the shower, and no one showered this early in the morning. The sound was hypnotic, drawing him in. Virgil felt his body move as if on autopilot. His hand reached for the door handle.

He blinked once and the scene outside his door was so different. A beautiful expanse of water was in front of him, a waterfall running over the rocks above. The small lake was surrounded by trees on all sides, shielding it from view. Virgil’s body moved through the water as if it wasn’t even there, until he was stood directly under the waterfall. He tilted his head back, enjoying the feeling of the rushing water running over his face.

Then he felt a presence behind him.

Virgil wasn’t startled when the figure rested their hand on him. He wasn’t startled when he turned around to find it was Roman. He wasn’t startled to find out both of them were entirely naked. He expected this. He seemed to expect everything that happened. He expected every moment, every enjoyable moment. 

There was one thing he didn’t expect, and that was what brought him back to the present. He awoke with a start, sitting up in bed. Virgil immediately clapped his hand over his mouth to stop any noises escaping. The feeling running through his entire body was intense, yet over quickly. Virgil slowly dropped his hand, “Shit…” He muttered to himself as his situation dawned on him.

He rolled out of bed, sluggishly and made his way as cautiously as he could to the bathroom. After cleaning himself up and calming himself down several times, he was back under the covers. This time, he was unable to sleep and so checked the time on his phone. 5:49am. Resigning himself to another sleepless night, he turned onto his side and unlocked his phone.


	3. Chapter 3

Finally, the summer vacation was over. The torturous months of being alone were done, the start of a new school year meaning that Patton was finally able to see his friends again, everyday! He dressed and quickly ran out of the house, able to make it to the school in record time.

He practically skipped through the halls on his way to his locker, almost squealing with delight when he saw that his hoodie-wearing neighbour was already there. Patton ran towards the figure, “Virgil!”

The taller boy flinched on instinct and turned just in time to catch Patton’s hug, letting out a short breathy laugh, “Uh, hi Pat. How, was your summer?” He managed to pry himself out of the hug. Patton looked up at the boy, a wide grin spread across his face and his eyes twinkling with happiness.

Patton turned to his own locker, the smile never leaving his face as he opened it, “It was great! I got a lot of stuff done, but I missed everyone so much! We did say we’d all meet up so much more over the summer, but it’s okay, because we’re here now!” He rattled this all off, depositing some of the contents of his bag into the locker.

“Yup, it’s so good to be back…” Virgil rolled his eyes, leaning against his now closed locker. His eyes were watching all the kids that passed by the pair of them, noting how most of them avoided his eyes but felt the gaze hitting his back as they walked away.

“So, how was your summer, Virgil?” His gaze fell to his conversation partner, watching him rock back and forth slightly. It was clear that he was trying to find some outlet for all of his energy. Virgil took a moment before responding to wonder how on earth Patton was a friend of his. They were practically opposites; Patton was all smiles and bubbly energy, a friend to everyone. Virgil was dark and – according to most of the school’s population - menacing, solitary for the most part.

“It was alright, I suppose. Pretty easy-going. Didn’t do that much…” Virgil dipped his head slightly as he remembered the events of the previous day, “You’re right… we, we should have… hung out more…” He praised himself for his make up choice, with the fact it was able to cover the heat that was rising into his cheeks.

Patton knew Virgil very well at this point in their friendship and was able to notice even the smallest changes. He saw the change in his posture, the way his body slightly turned away from him. At first, the thought was that Virgil was getting embarrassed by something and Patton went to say something but was cut off by the noise of something resting on the locker just above his.

“My small ray of sunshine and thin streak of moonlight. It’s wonderful to see you again!”

“Roman!” Patton shut his locker quick as he spun around to give the taller boy an enthusiastic hug of his own. This one was not only returned, but he was lifted in to the air and spun around. The two laughed together, exchanging their own post-vacation pleasantries. Roman was about to tell a long tale of the many ‘adventures’, as he liked to call them, he and his family enjoyed but realised it would be better to wait until lunch when there was more time and all of their group were present.

“How about you, Virgil?” Roman looked up at the other boy present, a wide smile gracing his features, “How was your summer?”

Patton turned once again to smile at his friend, but it dropped slightly as he noticed that Virgil had sunk into himself a little more. His cheeks were starting to show a light pink colour.

“Alright, I guess…” was all Virgil said in response, not even looking at Roman. Patton’s eyes flew between the two, but the question he was going to ask died on his lips as he saw a smirk growing slowly on Roman’s face.

“Oh, is that so?” Roman passed Patton and ducked into Virgil’s vision, “You know it’s rude to not return the question…”

Virgil simply rolled his eyes and toyed with a loose thread, “I already heard what you said to Patton. Why would I ask again? Do you really like the sound of your voice that much?” The loud laugh that followed had Virgil turn his head to look down the hallway, the blush slowly slipping into his ears.

“Well, clearly. Who wouldn’t love to have my voice?” To prove his point, Roman began to sing loudly, drawing the attention of everyone within range while causing Virgil to sink into himself even more.

Roman sent a glance towards the boy and quickly stopped, “Uh, sorry Virgil… I forget you’re not so fond of attention.” He placed a gentle hand on the other’s shoulder, showing a genuine smile. Patton could almost swear that he could see something like affection in the split second that Roman let down his over-the-top persona.

He quickly recovered however, “Well, I shall see both of you at lunch! Have a wonderful day…” With that, Roman turned and walked down the hallway.

Patton had been watched the interaction with wide eyes, mouth just slightly agape. The two had been open about their crushes to each other for some time, so Patton was well aware of how Virgil was handling the situation. What shocked him was Roman’s response, it was almost as if…

Patton shook his head to clear the thought. He couldn’t start thinking that way. He knew the extent of Virgil’s crush, knew how deep in he was. If Patton even entertained the idea, he could get Virgil’s hopes up, and he couldn’t do that. After snapping out of his daze, the shorter boy pulled on Virgil’s arm, pulling him down so he could speak a little quieter, “What was all of that? Did something happen over summer?” Patton gasped, covering his mouth, “Oh my gosh, something happened, didn’t it?! Oh, what happened!?”

Virgil avoided his gaze, beginning to walk to his first class, hoping to avoid the conversation. Instead, Patton trotted alongside him, eyes wide and hopeful. They walked for a minute in silence when Patton spoke again, “I’ll tell you what happened with me, if you tell me…”

This got Virgil to stop.

“Seriously?”

Patton nodded, a small blush crawling onto his face, “I mean, it’s nothing huge… but it was… something…”

They both resumed walking, side by side, telling each other about the events that had occurred between themselves and their respective crushes. Virgil snorted at Patton’s excuse, while Patton gaped at the revelation that the rumours were true about Roman’s piercing.

“I knew it…” Patton whispered to himself.

“I’m sure ya did, Pat.” Virgil’s hand patted his friend’s shoulder, “Well, this is my class. See you at lunch.” He raised a hand as he stepped into the room, leaving Patton to walk to his own class.

—

Virgil sighed under his breath as the lunch break rolled around. He stretched out his shoulders, threw on his bag and walked out. He couldn’t help but hear the voices around him as he walked by. Any sound unnerved him, but he kept his face stoic as he made his way to grab his lunch and find the usual table.

The fact he was taller than the average student helped him as he attempted to find out if anyone else were already at their table. Thankfully, there was a familiar face sat down, just beginning to eat. Virgil made his way over, eyes either down to the floor or flicking up for a second to ensure he was heading in the right direction. He let out a sigh as he sat down.

“Hello Virgil.”

“Hey Logan,” Virgil relaxed a little and shot a small smile to the other boy. He remembered the conversation this morning and hastily added, “How was your summer?”

Logan flashed his own polite smile, going into a short description of the trip his family took over the summer. Virgil responded with small noises of interest as he went about settling himself, hoping that the story would last until someone else appeared. He really did not want to talk about his summer again. Out of the corner of his eye, Virgil noticed Logan watching him.

As the story ended, Virgil prepared himself for the inevitable. He took a steadying breath before-

“Virgil, you don’t have to discuss your summer with me. I am able to gather that you clearly don’t want to from your body language.” A soft smile was sent Virgil’s way, causing his entire body to relax.

“Oh, thank fuck. I didn’t want to have to deal with that again today…” Virgil crossed his arms, dropping his head down against them. There was a soft snort from the boy across from him.

“Virgil! Pick your head up off the table!”

Virgil only turned his head, so he could look up at Patton, “Nah… It’s comfy.” He caught the pout on his shorter friend’s face, before straightening up, “Alright, just stop pouting.”

It was quickly replaced by a bright smile as Patton sat down next to Virgil, clearly attempting to pretend everything was normal. However, the pink on his cheeks gave him away. “Hey Logan! How was your summer?” Patton quickly asked, his eyes completely stuck on the boy opposite.

Virgil watched his friend, noticing how he was unable to keep still, that he was practically vibrating from anticipation. Every word that left Logan’s mouth was almost like a part of an incantation that kept Patton under his control. Virgil wondered for a moment if Logan knew about the crush. He quickly threw that thought aside. It was common knowledge that the smartest kid in school had little to no knowledge of social cues, so it was unlikely. But he was able to know that Virgil didn’t-

“And there’s our twilight!”

The thought was quickly cut off by the arrival of Roman, who slid into the seat next to Logan. He wrapped an arm around the nerd, grinning widely at him.

“You were referring to me, I suppose…” the resigned sigh that followed caused his fellow tablemates to stifle giggles, “Do I want to know the context?”

“Well, Patton is our ray of sunshine. He’s always smiling, always happy, brightening up our days!” Roman extended his other arm in Patton’s direction as if he were presenting an art piece.

“And Virgil is our streak of moonlight. Only appearing when it gets dark, but still comforting nonetheless.” The arm moved to Virgil.

“You must be our twilight, Logan. Bright enough for us to see, yet we must turn ourselves on when you approach.” The arm gestured lightly down Logan’s side. Virgil did not miss how Patton’s eyes followed the movement, he couldn’t miss the pink cheeks turning slightly redder. “Also, you’re a nerd, you like books. Therefore, it fits perfectly!” Roman exclaimed, throwing his arms into the air.

Logan merely gave a glance to the extravagant boy, “Oh, really Roman? And what does that make you?” He adjusted his glasses as he waited for a response.

“Clearly, I am sunrise. For you all awaken once I appear!” Roman puffed his chest out a little, somehow exuding more self-confidence.

“Makes sense why I sleep through everything you say…” Virgil murmured under his breath, loud enough for it to be heard over the ambient noise of the room.

Roman scoffed and sent an offended look across the table. As he went to retort, Patton managed to interject. He reminded Roman that he wanted to talk about his summer with them all, clearly wanting to avoid an argument on the first day back. This did get the topic back onto Roman, so he was pleased and began to retell various stories about his family’s vacations – in between mouthfuls of his food.

Patton took a moment to glance around at his small group of friends. They were all so different from one another. Himself and Roman were similar in that they were both social butterflies, able to flit from group to group. Where Roman was confident and loud, Patton was bubbly and sweet. Virgil and Logan were alike as both preferred to keep to themselves more often than not. While Virgil used to be alone because people were afraid of him, Logan was alone by circumstance as others were not used to how he processed information. They’d all somehow become an unlikely group of friends, and Patton couldn’t help but love every second of it.

He was brought back into reality when a hand swung in front of his vision, “Wha?” Patton’s head moved to look at each of the other boys in turn.

“You zoned out on us for a moment there, Pat. Are you okay?”

Patton smiled sheepishly, “I’m great, because I’m here with all of you again! I missed you all so much over summer!”

“I remember you saying something about you wanting us all to have met up more over summer. I wish I had been around more!” Roman spoke with his dramatic flair once again.

Patton just laughed, “It’s alright, really! It would have been nice, but now we get to spend lunch together again! I’m just happy for that, honestly.”

He hadn’t noticed the small look of feigned confusion that crossed Logan’s face before he spoke, “Oh? You wished we could have all met up more? As I told you, I was free for a large majority of the summer, myself. You could have simply asked, Patton.” He smiled softly, eyes closing for a moment.

Patton was gone. He practically melted in his seat from the adorable moment before him, as well as the pure embarrassment he felt. He knew his face must be glowing, but he still attempted to maintain some form of normalcy, “W-well, I mean, I could’ve. I should’ve, but I was, busy, with.. things, and I kinda, lost, track of time, and wow, look at the time. I just remembered that, I needed to, go grab some stuff, from my locker. I’ll see you guys later.” Patton quickly stood and rushed out of the room.

Virgil said a quick goodbye before standing and following his friend, knowing he would need someone to rant to after that.

The other two watched as they left, both seemingly stunned at the quick turn of events.

“Wow. Even by my standards, that was completely unsubtle…” Roman let out a low whistle.

Logan turned to shoot a glare towards his friend, “I wasn’t trying to make him that uncomfortable, I only aimed to fluster him a little. I didn’t think he would be so… affected by that.”

“Well, what’s the plan now, since that one died a fairly painful death?”

“I’m not sure…”


	4. Chapter 4

All the planning and scheming had begun sometime last year when Roman had pointed out the differences in the way Patton acted around Logan.

The blushes, the constant staring, the fact he would recount even the smallest details. Roman had even gone so far as to find several lists of “how to tell if someone has a crush on you” to prove his point.

Logan was surprised, and highly flattered. It had taken a week for him to fully process the information and consider his own feelings for the shorter boy. He did his own research and found that he was showing his own signs of having a crush. This took another week to fully settle in his mind, but thankfully it was summer vacation, so he didn’t have to figure this out around Patton. Instead he came to the conclusion that perhaps a relationship with Patton would, in fact, be quite enjoyable.

Roman’s eagerness to prove that Patton had a crush on Logan had taught Logan the physical signs. Prior to the end of the school year, Logan began to notice similar signs from Virgil towards Roman. He shared this information with Roman later that day, once the pair were alone. He found out that day how high Roman’s voice can go when he’s happy.

It had been Roman’s idea to wait and see if the others would gather up the courage to tell the others. It had also been Roman’s idea to see if they could help push it along by teasing them a little. Logan may have contributed to the plans. Logan may have already had the idea before Roman proposed they work together.

After many arguments over text messages, they agreed to not go out of their way to engage with the other two. At least, not to tease them.

There had been the couple times early during the holidays where they had all managed to meet up. They had been subtle, pushing each other to take risks with it, which Roman delighted in. The result had been Virgil and Patton huddling up together that evening, when they thought the other two were asleep and whispering to each other for what felt like hours.

During the gap between meeting up, Roman and Logan had kept in contact via text messages. Most of them were Roman brainstorming up ideas and Logan rejecting them for being too forward or too extravagant.

This constant communication meant that once Logan received the call from Patton, he felt it his duty to inform Roman of the event. Patton called.

The response was instant.

WHAT!!! WHAT HAPPENED!! TELL ME EVERYTHING!!!!

Logan relayed the events with precision. Roman’s response was full of exclamations and praise, as well as theories and ideas of where to go next. The conversation slowed to a halt all of a sudden, as Roman was pulled back into familial activities. He was off on his fourth trip, not surprising considering his family’s wealth.

Roman returned soon after, but there was only a day before they were to go back to school. No time to really meet up. That was until he overheard that his mother was planning on returning something to Virgil’s house. He offered to go instead, so she could stay home. Once he’d entered his friend’s home, Roman’s phone was in his hand. He updated Logan immediately.

@ Virgil’s. Need a plan! Thinking about pet name. Thoughts?

Roman stared at the text screen, impatiently bouncing his leg up and down. He glanced behind himself to the door where Virgil had disappeared. His head snapped back to his phone when he heard the notification noise.

Depends. What have you already said to each other?

Roman snorted softly. He asked me if I was the whore he paid for.

There was a short pause before the next message.

Romance is truly alive between the two of you.

This time, Roman laughed to himself. Don’t be jealous.

The kitchen door closing loudly caused Roman to drop his phone quickly. As much as he wanted to show Virgil and finally get him to confess, that wasn’t a part of the plan. The rest of the day passed, and Roman was about to leave. He took pause and decided one last action wouldn’t hurt. So, he stretched as high as he could, arching his back ever so slightly. Roman’s eyes squinted, but he kept his gaze towards Virgil.

That’s what he was looking for.

Roman left and waited until he was out of sight before pulling out his phone to send another update.

—

Now, alone at their lunch table, Roman and Logan reflected on their actions. Well, if reflecting meant Logan pointing out the flaws in their plan as well as berating himself for going along with it.

“Okay, okay, I guess you could be right. Perhaps we shouldn’t have been so subtle about it.” Roman rested a hand on Logan’s shoulder, “But that doesn’t mean we should give up!”

Logan, who was holding his head in his hands as his elbows rested on the table, glanced to his friend. The look he gave was full of venom. “Oh. Is that so?” While his body language indicated defeat, his voice was bitter, “and what wonderful idea would you have us enact? Something grand and eccentric, I assume. Well, I want no part of it if it is to cause more issues, Roman.” His eyes cast back down to the table.

There was a moment of silence between them, filled only by the ambient chatter surrounding them. It felt too loud. Logan finally understood what Virgil had meant that one time when-

“No. Too all of that.”

Roman’s voice brought Logan out of his thoughts. “What?” He snapped his head up, a look of confusion on his face.

“I mean, no, that is not what I was thinking about doing at all.” Roman wouldn’t meet his gaze, his eyes occupied with looking around the room, “I hate to admit it, but you are right. I had a better idea, which will be simple… at least, that’s how I envision it going…” He finally looked at his friend, “Would you like to hear it?”

—

Roman sighed as he leant against the wall next to his locker, head tilting back. Today had been a mess, but at least they had a plan for how to make it up to their friends. He closed his eyes as he attempted to relax, which meant he didn’t see the person who approached him before they spoke.

“I need to talk to you.”

Roman opened his eyes and smiled as he locked eyes with Virgil. He pushed himself away from the wall, “Of course, I’ll always have time for you, Patrick Grump.”

“Roman. This is serious.”

Roman flinched at the shift in tone. He straightened himself up and spoke plainly, “Of course. What’s the matter, Virgil?”

He noticed how Virgil’s body went slightly rigid at the comment as well as the steadying breath he took, “Class is starting soon though, so… walk and talk?” It was posed as a command but came out as a question. Roman couldn’t help the way his eyes softened.

“Sure.”

They both turned and began walking down the corridor in silence. Roman waited, allowing Virgil a moment to get his thoughts in order. All of them were aware of how Virgil needed that extra bit of time to plan out what he would say during conversations he deemed important.

“Does Logan like Patton?”

Roman was taken aback for a second. That was not the question he thought was coming. His eyes looked to the boy at his side, locking gazes with him. He noticed the intense protectiveness coming through Virgil’s gaze, along with a sense of pleading.

“Just tell me.”

They’d both stopped in the middle of the hallway now. Staring at each other. The bell had already gone for class, but neither of them moved. They were alone.

Roman was yet to say anything, too lost in the sudden change in the boy in front of him to even think of a response just yet. He took in the strong stance making Virgil stand tall which meant he was the same height as Roman, he noticed the clenched fists shoved as far into the deep pockets of the hoodie Virgil always wore, Virgil’s gaze was piercing through his entire body as if reading every thought. This was all offset by a slight shake that was slowly making its way through the other’s thin body. Without much thought, Roman took a step forward and rested his hands on the side of Virgil’s shoulders.

He considered covering for Logan. He truly did. For only a second. Those eyes finally focusing on his own for longer than a second pushed the thought far away. “Yes, he does.” His voice was barely above a whisper. He didn’t intend to speak so quietly, it was a simple reaction.

Roman saw Virgil go to speak, but then stop and think. There it was. The sudden realisation of where he was. The rising panic was showing and Roman spoke again, attempting to act as normal as he could. In one swift motion, Roman’s right arm was resting along both Virgil’s shoulders and they were both continuing their way down the hallway. Both of them walked in silence as Virgil steadied himself.

“I was thinking of trying to get them together somehow, but I was having some troubles coming up with ideas that I could do on my own…” Roman kept his voice steady, his gaze forward. “However, if I had an accomplice…” He saw Virgil glance up at him from the corner of his eye, “It would be a lot easier, especially if said accomplice was a really good friend?”

There was another beat of silence.

“What idea do you have, Roman?”

Perfect.

—

The bell rang, signalling the end of the day. For as much as he was looking forward to the day when it had begun, Patton was far too eager for it to be over. He’d embarrassed himself at lunch, and then he’d pulled Virgil away, and worst of all, he’d probably damaged his friendship with Logan. There was no way he wasn’t aware of his crush now.

The boy sighed and threw on his bag as he stood, leaving the classroom with his head down. He made his way to his locker. All he had to do was open it, put its contents into his bag and leave. Nothing more, nothing less. He could deal with his thoughts on the walk home.

Patton unlocked the door with a resigned sigh. Sure, he’d love to see his friends and speak with them, sort it out before he left. But he couldn’t bring himself to face them all. He rested his head against the metal of the locker above for a moment, as if it would still his racing thoughts. Patton physically felt his body jump when a hand rested on his shoulder. He turned quickly but relaxed just as fast.

“Virgil, you scared the life out of me!” He smiled stiffly and smacked the other’s arm as lightly as he could, “You’re always so quiet. You gotta teach me how to do that sometime, kiddo.” Patton turned back to his locker, trying to be quick but not obviously so as to not raise suspicion.

Virgil simply moved to lean against the lockers, “Firstly, I’m older than you. Second, please stop pretending… It won’t help…”

Patton shut his locker with more force than he meant to, turning to give yet another stiff smile to his taller friend. It dropped off quickly as he saw the sympathetic look on Virgil’s face. He sighed and dropped his head, feeling the tears pricking again, “I messed everything up though, Virgil…”

The hand was back on his shoulder.

“We already went through this. You didn’t mess anything up…”

The silence told Virgil that Patton was still unsure in believing him. It was frustrating, but Virgil had to stick to the plan.

“You wanna walk together?”

That cheered the shorter boy up. He immediately sprang up, his eyes wide, his smile genuine. “Really?! Would you?!”

Virgil huffed out a small laugh, “I mean, I offered, right?”

Patton’s worries were thrown aside for a while as he thought about walking home with his friend. He waited, and they spoke about the rest of their day as Virgil emptied his own locker. They made their way outside, laughing something or other. It wasn’t important enough as it flew right out of Patton’s head as he glanced forward to see a familiar figure with their back to them, waiting a little way down the road. Virgil noticed it himself, and they both shared a glance.

It was if Patton could read Virgil’s thoughts.

Talk to him. I’ll be a little way down the road if you need me.

A small nod from Patton and Virgil walked forward. He passed Logan, offering a small goodbye that was quickly returned. He made his way down the street, waiting until he was just out of sight before turning off and making his way back around through some backstreets. When he found the back of the mastermind behind the scheme, he ducked down and approached. “Hey, where are they?” He whispered.

Roman pressed a finger to his lips in a shush motion before nodding over the bushes in front of them. In unison, the two peaked above the leaves just in time to see Patton approaching Logan.

They watched as he hesitated, but spoke anyway, “Uh, hey Logan. What’cha doing out here? Don’t you normally, uh, walk home?” Patton offered a hesitant smile as Logan turned to look at him. The smile faltered slightly as he noticed the fact that Logan’s cheeks were a soft shade of pink, and it all together failed when the sincere smile was added.

“I was waiting for you. I felt there was something you needed to hear.” Logan reached up and adjusted his glasses, a small nervous habit he rarely showed, “Patton, I apologise for earlier. I didn’t mean to cause such a reaction. I hope you can forgive me for my previous actions.”

Patton leaned forward, hands clasped together to stop himself from reaching out to Logan, unsure if his friend would be okay with such an interaction, “Of course, Logan! You’re so impor-” Logan raised a hand, palm out towards Patton. The shorter boy stopped suddenly, eyes wide and showing a slight ounce of fear as he swallowed hard.

Logan took a step towards his friend, “I apologise again, but I wasn’t quite finished with what I intended to say to you.” He reached out and rested a hand on Patton’s shoulder, “I was hoping that, instead of you simply accepting a verbal apology, I could make it up to you by other means.” Logan’s eyes searched the other’s face, looking for any sign he could possibly take to infer the other’s reaction.

Patton was sure his face was bright red, but there was one question he needed answering at this second. “H-how long…?” His voice was quiet. The soft chuckle he got in response threatened to end him on the spot, but the softening of Logan’s eyes is what caused the soft squeak to escape his throat.

“It came to my attention several weeks before the summer break. However, the past is unimportant. Patton, would you allow me to make it up to you? Perhaps by allowing me to take you out on a date of some kind?”

Patton could almost not believe the words that just reached his ears. His eyes were wide with shock, the fear gone. His mouth hung open, his cheeks hot. He wasn’t able to form words, his brain had shutdown, left him. He could only nod slowly. Eventually, he found some words, “T-th-that… wou-would be… nice…” His words were gone again as the boy in front of him smiled wider than he had seen before.

“I’ll text you with the details later this evening.” A thought crossed his mind as he continued to stare at the boy in front of him. He couldn’t help but indulge, he wanted to see the reaction this would cause, hoping it would be positive. Logan lent down and placed a gentle kiss to Patton’s right cheek, feeling the warmth seeping into his lips. He pulled away and smiled fondly, watching as the shorter boy’s hand reached up to hold the spot. “I shall be looking forward to it immensely”

And with that, he turned and walked off in the direction of his house. The pair behind the bush were almost as shocked as Patton. Neither of them had expected that turn of events. They didn’t move until Patton had distractedly walked off in the opposite direction, seemingly forgetting that Virgil was to be waiting for him.

There was a beat of silence.

“That was unexpected.”

“Yup.”

The two glanced at each other before breaking out into laughter. They ended up sat with their backs to the plant they’d been crouched behind, letting the tension of the day leave their bodies.

“What a first day back, huh?”

Virgil rolled his eyes before glancing to the boy next to him, “That’s one way to put it. At least, we don’t have to listen to their drama anymore, huh?” He turned and leaned his head back, closing his eyes.

Roman stared for a moment but was interrupted by his phone notification. He quickly pulled it up and checked. A text from Logan. As surreptitiously as he could, he opened the message. Your turn. Roman couldn’t hold in his laughter as he locked his phone again.

Virgil had one eye open, watching Roman as he checked his phone. The sun was just beginning to go down and the light it cast reflected off the other’s hair, showing off the ginger-y coloured strands that ran through out it. He couldn’t help the small smile that was tugging at the corners of his lips as Roman laughed to himself, but he fought to keep it under control. While Patton and Logan had worked out well, a small bubble of hope was beginning to form in his chest. It grew larger when Roman stood and offered a hand to him.

“C’mon. You should get home. I’m sure someone will eventually remember the promise and come looking for you.” Roman grinned as the other boy grabbed his hand to pull himself up. This was the perfect time.

Roman quickly put his acting skills into effect, feigning a sudden look of inspiration, “Virgil. I just had a thought.”

“That’s never good, but okay.”

Roman’s face dropped, changing to an offended look as he scoffed, “My ideas and thoughts are the true catalyst for what just occurred, so you can’t say they’re all bad. Anyway, I think you’ll enjoy this one.” The persona dropped as he took a step towards Virgil, watching as the other boy’s face became suspicious. “I was inspired, shall we say. Virgil, I’ve also been aware of your feelings towards me and I, too, have decided to finally act upon this.” He pulled up their still connected hands and placed a gentle kiss against the back of Virgil’s before making eye contact again, “Would you let me take you on a date, my potential romance?”

Virgil stood stock still, unable to move. His eyes followed Roman’s every movement, searching for any sign this may be a joke, “You’re serious…” He said, after a long pause.

“Deadly.”

He paused, searching Roman’s eyes one last time, “Well, then, uh… sure, yeah. Let’s do it.”

Roman surged forward, pulling Virgil into a hug. It took a moment before the other boy practically melted into the embrace. Today was definitely not what he expected.


End file.
